High spirits in the Himalayas

Travel information

The simple, Indian-chic bedroom at the Shakti house
in Shey, on the banks of the River Indus

LADAKH: THE PATH TO ENLIGHTENMENT

STAYING THERE
Cleveland Collection (020 7843 3531; www.clevelandcollection.co.uk) offers a nine-
night trip with two nights B&B at The Leela Palace New Delhi,
seven nights fully inclusive at Shakti Ladakh (www.shaktihimalaya.com) then a day's room use
at The Leela Palace, from £3,425 per person, based on two sharing
and including BA flights to Delhi, transfers and activities.

GETTING THERE
British Airways (www.ba.com), Air India (www.airindia.in)
and Virgin Atlantic (www.virgin-atlantic.com) all fly from Heathrow
to Delhi. Air India, Go Airlines (www.goair.in) and Kingfisher (www.flykingfisher.com) offer onward flights to
Leh. By road, it's an epic journey of at least two days via
Srinagar or Manali over high Himalayan passes. Journey time Flight
time of 8.5 hours from London to Delhi, then a 75-minute flight to
Leh.

WEATHER TO GO
Between mid-June and mid-September when days are pleasantly warm
(and nights cold). In October, temperatures begin to drop, with
winter snows falling in November until March-April.